Abstract
This paper discusses the impact of resilience as a popular way of thinking about humans and society at large. It initially sets out differing definitions and approaches to the study of resilience, before dealing with the somewhat “elastic” quality of resilience as a political agenda. The paper questions how influential resilience theory really is in terms of its appeal to academic scholarship as well as the public policy-making. It argues that the perceived danger of resilience theory to be abused by the populist Conservative Right ideologues and reactionary political forces world-wide is highly exaggerated. The potential of resilience thinking for progressive change remains to be exploited.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | The Handbook of Neoliberalism |
| Editors | Simon Springer, Kean Birch, Julie MacLeavy |
| Place of Publication | Abingdon, Oxon |
| Publisher | Routledge |
| Pages | 190-206 |
| Number of pages | 17 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-1138844001 |
| Publication status | Published - 27 Jun 2016 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Geography, Planning and Development
- Public Administration
- Urban Studies
- Sociology and Political Science